Welcome

If you or your spouse are leaning out of your marriage, Discernment Counseling may be exactly what you need. Please visit our website to learn more about this unique, short term counseling designed exactly for your situation.

Welcome to The Doherty Relationship Institute! Bill and Elizabeth are thrilled to welcome you into our little corner of the Web. If you are coming to us as a married person or someone interested in couple relationships, we hope to add to your knowledge and well-being. If you are coming here as someone who works with couples, we hope to become part of your professional world and contribute to your professional growth.

Combining Two Distinct Voices

Elizabeth’s wedding, October 2003

Bill Doherty, Ph.D. has been at this “marriage stuff” since the mid-1970’s. His daughter was born in the mid 70’s and after years in the corporate world and raising small kids, she is joining forces with Bill while adding her own unique voice and passions around marketing, social entrepreneurship, and marriage enhancement.

We are an unusual team (for good, we hope.) We cross genders, generations, life experiences, and (this is uncommon among strong marriage advocates), we offer secular marriage advice as our core competency while having deep respect for religion. You’ll find us talking to people from all places on the religious and political spectrum, with shared passions and rewarding friendships across lines of diversity.

Educating couples in all stages of stuckness and distress of their relationships and the site of our Marriage Counseling and Discernment Counseling Directory.

A home for marriage therapists.

Bill Doherty and The Doherty Relationship Institute

Bill’s work will never be contained in one place, but we’re having fun bringing a lot of his interests into what we’re dubbing “DRI.” We both love grass roots, citizen engagement initiatives, marriage and parenting conversations, teaching and consulting, and technology as a way to enhance learning and social communities.

Discernment Counseling: training for couples therapists wanting to master the twin ambivalences of someone uncertain about being married and unclear if marriage therapy would be helpful.

Marital First Responders: an innovation in strengthening marriages by helping the natural confidants (friends and family) be more confident and skilled at navigating the small to large conversation they are currently having with people who open up to them about relationship problems large and small.